by Bishop Charles C Jones D.D.
Text: Acts 4:31
When you try to do something without praying, what happens???
But have you ever noticed the difference
of what happens when we pray first???
Before prayer it seems that we can do little but after we have prayed it seems as if we can do more.
When there is no effort given to prayer things often end up in failure however when we pray we will see great success.
I know that we are living in a very busy time, people are always in a hurry, and cumbered with much but there comes a time in your day when you ought to slow down and pray.
You can try your very best and your very hardest, and with the most effort, and the most perfection, that you think is possible, and fall on your face every time without prayer!!!
BUT when you pray first it just seems that everything falls right into place don’t it??....
EVEN THE SIMPLEST THINGS WE DO!
Just like reading your bible for example
I can pick up my bible and sometimes read several verses or maybe even a couple of chapters and I wonder what I’ve read...
And then I remember I didn’t pray yet..
I didn’t pray for God to give me His wisdom and knowledge and understanding and retainment of His Word...
And then with just that simple little prayer in Jesus Name you see so much difference! and so much more understanding...
ITS AWESOME!!!!!
So does it help to take time to pray.....
OF COURSE IT DOES!!!
AAAAHHH God’s word says where two or three are gathered together...
And where two or more will come in one accord...that’s when we start to see some action begin to take place in our Walk with God...AMEN
With that simple little thing called prayer we’ll begin to see Souls Saved, The Sick Healed, and See those bound by the things of this world Delivered, and their Burdens will begin to be lifted because of the Anointing, we will begin to see the power of God come in all of its fullness Pastors will begin to preach and teach like never before..as We lift up the Name of Jesus Christ Higher than any other name...Because there’s something about that name.
In that Name there’s Power within itself but when you mingle the name of Jesus with this thing called Prayer you will find out very fast that PRAYER CHANGES THINGS!!!!
There’s a little bird called the secretary bird which has wings and can fly I am told that when his enemy will begin to sneak up on him to pursue him, much like the devil will attempt to do to you and I, I am told that He doesn't have enough sense to spread his wings and rise up and fly away from his enemy, so his enemy captures him and what happens?
He perish’s!
Don’t that remind you of you and I?
Saints we as believers also have wings I wanna call them "the wings of Prayer". At any time we can mount up and spread our wings. But way to often when we get into trouble. We forget to pray.
And when we forget what happens every time?
Our problems overcome us, our troubles overcome us and before we know it we end up being defeated before we even get started.
As we look here at the people that are involved in our text. They had been witnessing faithfully to the resurrection of Jesus Christ.Then troublesome times came, Persecution began,and they were forbidden to speak again in the name of Jesus.
I wonder what would we do today if we were forbidden to speak in the name Of Jesus Christ. ( After all we are representing the Kingdom)
But what did they do? What was their answer to this threat of persecution? It was prayer! (Tell your neighbor, Prayer Changes Things)
Our Scripture says in verse 24 "They lifted up their voice to God with one accord" i.e. when they had prayed and after they prayed in verse 31 it say's the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.
People will say today," Well we don’t have a move of God today like they had or we don't have a move of God like we did 105 years ago during the great Azusa Revival or the Charismatic Awakening in the 50's and 60's. What about today?
It’s because we stopped praying for God to move in the earth! (Ask your neighbor," Are you behind in your prayer life?)
NOW TELL THEM, "PRAYER CHANGES THINGS AND PEOPLE"
Saints we need to no we have to get back to the basics
and I believe that its Prayer!
Prayer is what makes our world go around.
When you and I begin to Pray things begin to happen and there is a BOLDNESS that comes upon you with this Prayer to speak the Word of God.
You can’t get down on your knees and pray a little wimpy prayer no you are going to have to enter in beyond the veil and ask with boldness, and you have to ask like you really need it. There is nothing wrong with praying especially when your looking for results.
The Apostles had a great task confronting them and their opposition was fierce.
They needed a greater power than their own.
They needed courage and they needed God’s wisdom.
They needed that Power that only the Holy Ghost could give them.
Saints that is the most ultimate thing today that God’s people need.
If we are going to make it through this world with all of its turmoil,temptations,sufferings,pain and agonies. We are going to need the Power of the Holy Ghost in our lives. I don't see how anyone can make it without the Holy Ghost.
Now we know that it is the Holy Spirit that convicts us of our sin and comes into our heart when we get saved.
But I’m talking about something more today.I’m talking about something that can’t be compared to anything in this world.
There’s nothing in this world that can compare to the Holy Ghost.
There’s no alcohol ( E and J, Wild Irish Rose Wine, Jack Daniels) nor any Drug ( Oxycontin, PCP,LSD, Crack, Cocaine) nor any Woman or Man that can fill the void in your life like the Holy Ghost can.
When the devil tempts you my brothers and sisters it is this In-Filling of the Holy Ghost that is going to allow you to face the temptations that are put before you.
The reason why some people are not continually filled with the Holy Ghost is because their lives and hearts are being filled with so many worldly things.The Holy Ghost is ready to fill us and re-fill us but He can't because we have allowed ourselves to become so crowded with the things of the world that we have pushed Him into a tiny corner in our heart or spirit.
You can’t crowd the Holy Ghost into a tiny little corner in your life and expect that you’re gonna get all the things that God has in store for you.
But!!!!!!!! When you begin to pray and you begin to seek God and you begin to become pure in your thought life and in your heart and your prayer life gets stronger then the doors of heaven will begin to open up and the dam that’s been holding back the overflow in your life will begin to flow again. You will begin to get tuned in with God’s will for your life and you will begin to start to see things happen.
Then The Holy Ghost will begin to work in your life and you will begin to experience times of refreshing where you will be filled and re-filled, filled and re-filled,filled and re-filled the way that your suppose to be.
Saints don’t let worldliness hold back the Power of God in your life...you have to let the cares of this life go.
You have to begin to pray for God’s help to cut out the things in your life that are not productive toward God and Pray for the Holy Ghost to have his way in your life and you will begin to see those wheels of spiritual power moving.
There’s some people that will tell you that they have the Holy Ghost and that they have become perfect and they don’t sin
anymore. They are not telling the truth. 1 John 1:8 say's " If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us."
Even The Apostle Paul tells us in Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned and come short of the Glory of God"
And in Romans 7:15 it says,"For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate,that do I"
My Brothers and Sisters Paul is telling us that we can’t be completely perfect. But that we have to work at it. Our Sanctification is a continual work in progress.
It boils down to this it's not a matter of us getting the Holy Ghost, but it’s a matter of Him getting us.
Its alright to get more of Him but make sure you let Him have more of you.
We have to let the Holy Ghost have full possession of us. It's easy for us to organize,to preach,to sing but nothing is gonna happen unless all of the above is empowered by the Holy Ghost.
God’s Power is waiting, and ready to empower us and to posses us.
The same POWER that fell upon the early believers when they prayed should be expected of us today to fall down on us and rain down on us. I like that song by the Canton Spirituals that say's I Gotta Clean Up What I Messed Up" ( Elaborate ) I don't know who I'm talking to but it's time to Clean Up. If you want God's power in your life there is going to have to be some gully - washing and sin - killing in order for you to experience a personal revival in your life. The Dictionary defines Gully - Washing as a torrential rain that causes ditches to overflow creating flash floods on streets and roadways. A flash flood is a rapid flooding of geomorphic low-lying areas—washes, rivers, dry lakes and basins. It may be caused by heavy rain associated with astorm, hurricane, or tropical storm or meltwater from ice or snow flowing over ice sheets or snowfields.
I dont know about you but I need God right now to Open Flood Gates of Heaven and Let It Rain! I don't mind him washing me and filling me I don't mind Him flooding me and Overtaking me......Let it Rain! Do you feel the rain ? Its raining .... so let it rain!
Help Me Holy Ghost!
The Men in our reading Prayed...
And then they went out to turn the world upside down!!!!
Where did they receive the power and the courage to do this????
They received it after they had prayed!!
We already read that they were all filled with the Holy Ghost.....
Today if you’re feeling weak or if you’re feeling powerless, if you feel like you’re a fallen saint just remember this one thing that Prayer Changes Things!
Even So Come Lord Jesus
